Founded in 2014, Yacht Harbour has now gone through nearly 3 years of rapid growth, packed with milestones and interesting events. In this list are 11 things about Yacht Harbour that are not widely known, but we thought were interesting enough to share.
#1 Yacht Harbour started as an Instagram channel
Even though Yacht Harbour's initial plan was to build a web platform for a marketplace of yachts for sale, the company started an Instagram account in August 2014 to get some sort of traction, ahead of the launch of its website in December of that year.
At a time when no yachting media companies were on the platform, the strategy proved successful and saw Yacht Harbour get to 10,000 followers in under 4 months. This, in turn, proved instrumental to getting the first users to Yacht Harbour.
#2 We power instant results for a Top 5 search engine
Another little known fact about Yacht Harbour is that the company's index powers an instant result snippet for search engine, DuckDuckGo. One of the 5 available search settings on an iPhone, DuckDuckGo is a search engine built with privacy in mind.
Any user searching for a particular yacht on the platform, will see on top of search results an image of the yacht with it's main specifications, which DuckDuckGo displays using an API built by Yacht Harbour on top of its database for the search engine.
#3 News coverage was first meant as a content marketing play
Even though our audience is now spread evenly across its superyacht marketplace and its news section, Yacht Harbour's editorial coverage was started only in October 2015 to act as a content marketing vehicle for its search platform.
Despite these plans, news coverage rapidly evolved and grew to serve the purposes of a true media company, which Yacht Harbour has since become. Stories broken by our news department are now often used as sources by international media such as the BBC, CNBC and others.
#4 We built a chat bot to answer any yachting question
Developed in a wave of growing excitement over chat bots, Brook became the first chat bot in yachting that used a combination of machine learning, natural language recognition and big data to answer any question related to yacht.
Although Brook was since retired due to a lack of users, Yacht Harbour did manage to build a working version, answering over 80% of asked questions. Its original interface can still be seen here. When live it was even accessible from the Telegram messaging platform.
#5 Our content can be found on Forbes and Business Insider
As part of its content distribution strategy, Yacht Harbour struck deals with Business Insider to distribute part of its English-language content and to contribute stories to the French and Russian versions of Forbes.
With news stories around yachting and articles trying to open up the field to a more general audience, this content was read over 2 million times so far in 2017.
#6 We ran a crowdfunding campaign in our first year
Far from today's peak of attention around ICOs, Yacht Harbour ran a crowdfunding campaign in 2015 as an experiment, ahead of the launch of its charter marketplace to offer heavily discounted deals and lifetime advantages for participants.
Through the campaign, Yacht Harbour raised just under $3,000 from a series of contributors. The value of some the items offered then by Yacht Harbour has grown over 1,000x today.
#7 We get 10 million impressions of our content every month
Having rapidly grown from the 23 visitors Yacht Harbour on the day of it's launch, the company's combined channels now reach over 10 million impressions every month. This figure includes Yacht Harbour's website traffic, social media reach and audience on third-party platforms.
#8 There are sometimes easter eggs on Yacht Harbour
Sometimes overtaken by the holiday spirit, Yacht Harbour's homepage can sometimes change to adopt a special skin for limited times as seen above. So far, the company has dressed up its website for Halloween, Christmas and New Year's Eve but other events may soon be coming.
#9 One million minutes are spent watching Yacht Harbour's videos monthly
Playing an increasingly important role for any media company, videos have been a key to Yacht Harbour's success as well with over 800 days worth of videos being watched on our platform every month. The latest Black Pearl video alone reached over 3 million impressions on our network.
#10 Our Facebook page outranks its nearest competition 10 to 1
Owing much of its success to social media, Yacht Harbour has always tried to dominate the space in the superyacht sector and Facebook is currently the most reflective of this paradigm. Whereas Yacht Harbour gets 36,500 engagements on its page every week, the nearest competition currently sits at 3,300 engagements per week.
#11 It took us over 20,000 hours to build the Timeline platform
A major step forward in yacht search, Yacht Harbour's Timeline platform was launched in May 2017 after over 20,000 hours of research. The platform, compared to a Bloomberg terminal for yachting, lets its subscribers track the market in real time, discover the story behind any yacht and find the best deals on the market with big data.
Photos by Julien Hubert
The Turkish FDC Yachts has welcomed the 47m yacht Atina, who arrived at the shipyard for a major refit. Atina (previously known as Naseem) was built by Heesen in 2008, she has a steel hull and aluminum superstructure. She features the exterior and naval architecture by Heesen and the interior by Bannenberg & Rowell Design.The yacht was sold in June 2021After handover by her new owner, major refit work orders were decided and started to be carried out in late 2021. The interior and exterior will be updated by Red Yacht Design, who have worked with the FDC Yachts and the owner. The exterior by Red Yacht DesignA main work order will be focused on Atina’s deck spaces; she will get a totally new flybridge with new GA including an up-to-date navigation mast and hardtop. All sitting groups and living areas to be redesigned by the owner and renewed. The sundeck will get a 12-seated bar and a barbecue area, which makes it suitable for big outdoor parties. Exterior hull including superstructure to be repainted with new colors. Subconstructional upgrades to be carried out in the engine room with maintaining valves and piping. New beach deck to be manufactured and installed on aft.The tender garage will become a beach club with a gym. The pool, which is located at the front, will also be expanded. Some interior touch ups to be carried out in the cabins. She is targeted to be launched in May 2022 by FDC Yachts.Credits: FDC Yachts, Red Yacht Design, Yacht Harbour archive
January 21, 2022
In 2022 Riva celebrates its 180th anniversary and opens the new location of an elegant Riva Privée at the Cristallo, Luxury Collection Resort & SPA. Like an aquamarine gemstone set amidst the majestic snow-covered peaks of the Dolomites, a Unesco World Heritage site, the new Riva space embraces the cultural heritage and art nouveau-inspired architecture of Hotel Cristallo. The Riva Privée at the Cristallo is a temporary space that will welcome guests in the Stube 1872, the famed restaurant where chef Marco Pinelli has created a special Riva menu ranging from traditional Cortina d’Ampezzo cuisine to flavours evoking the sea. In keeping with the guiding philosophy of “Riva inside, inside Riva”, the initiative again renews the Riva Destination format that has already been a great success in other go-to destinations, including Paris, Venice, Opatija, Monaco, Mykonos and Formentera. Recent Riva Destination openings worldwide include: the Riva Privée in Ischia, at the Ristorante Daní Maison, whose culinary excellence is assured by Michelin-star chef Nino Di Costanzo; the Riva Lounge and Privée at the Ikador Luxury Boutique Hotel & Spa in Opatija (Croatia), and the Riva Privée at the Molo47 restaurant on Formentera, the most glamorous of the Balearic Islands.The Ferretti Group, led by Chief Executive Officer Alberto Galassi, is now one of the world’s leaders in the construction and sale of luxury yachts and pleasure vessels, with a unique portfolio of brands: Ferretti Yachts, Riva, Pershing, Itama, Mochi Craft, CRN, Custom Line and Wally.Credits: Ferretti Group
January 21, 2022
The design studio SkyStyle has united with Denison Yachting and presented the yacht concept Unique 71 to the market. The 71m vessel became the first yacht concept for the design studio, previously was known for aircraft interiors. Project Unique 71 is intended for cruising oceans in style and speed. Her futuristic profile and a 13-meter beam embrace sporty characteristics, such as a sharp, pointed bow and three-dimensional surfaces. Other notable features onboard the yacht include a sky lounge sundeck, a hot tub, a touch-and-go helipad, a gym, sauna, 12-seat theater, a billiard/bar room and a plunge pool with an automatic cover.The superyacht can accommodate up to 12 guests, including four comfortable cabins, one VIP suite, and one owner’s master stateroom. The owner’s deck is designed with an illuminated ceiling that can also be set to automatically open for an ocean breeze.“With Denison presenting this groundbreaking design, it allows a client to approach multiple shipyards to gather quotes to help develop and make this project a reality without being tied to a particular yard. The challenge is to find a shipyard that can understand this vision and the client’s goals – both as an individual and in their business/personal use of the yacht,” says Alex G. Clarke from Dension. The yacht’s interior is optimized to connect with the environment thanks to the generous transparent surfaces surrounding the social areas. The opacity of the glass panels that flank the yacht can be regulated to define the mood or increase privacy or transparency.She will be able to reach a top speed of 30 knots and cruise comfortably at 25 knots. SkyStyle is a design studio based in the U.S., Spain, and Argentina that’s focused on advanced aviation conceptual design. Lead designers Lucas Colombo and Max Pardo have worked with aviation giants such as Boeing to test the boundaries of what’s possible in an aircraft cabin. Today, Lucas and Max are using their aviation design skills to break into the yachting industry. Credits: Denison Yachting
January 21, 2022
Horizon Yachts has launched a new build Horizon FD90. The interior and exterior of the 22nd hull of the successful FD series was penned by Cor D. Rover Design. The wide beam and high-volume interior that defines the Cor D. Rover-designed Fast Displacement (FD) Series, the new FD90 greets visitors with an expansive aft deck. This four-stateroom yacht has a contemporary interior with an on-deck master, a convertible VIP on the lower deck and a spacious beach club. Satin walnut, black glass and black lacquer finishes highlight the loft-like main salon, whose volume is amplified by floor-to-ceiling windows and comfortable, custom low-profile furniture including a large sofa with built-in storage. Specified with high-end equipment throughout, this FD90 is the first Horizon model to be equipped with the JUNG automation system, which allows the owner to control lighting, window treatments, audio and A/C via phone or iPad devices. The full-beam master stateroom is located on the main deck, and offers plentiful wardrobe space as well as a built-in leather loveseat under the window to starboard. The spacious ensuite features a full-length smart glass wall for privacy when desired.The new FD90 features a fully equipped beach club with a bar and a lounge settee that converts into a bed.<iframe width=560 height=315 src=https://www.youtube.com/embed/wn2fA0-D6og title=YouTube video player frameborder=0 allow=accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture allowfullscreen></iframe>Founded in 1987, Horizon Yachts has celebrated 35 years as one of the largest luxury yacht builders in the world as well as the number one builder in the Asia Pacific region. In the past three decades, Horizon has delivered over 855 luxury yachts, with more than 220 of these over 80 feet in length. Popular models ranging from 52 to 150 feet include motor yachts, superyachts, power catamarans, expedition yachts, and fast displacement motor yachts.Credits: Horizon Yachts
January 20, 2022
Gulf Craft is marking 20 years of its operation in the Maldives. Gulf Craft provides almost 80% of the Maldives’s water transportation services which includes public transport, coast guard, emergency and ambulance services, resorts, and leisure boats. With a strong and established presence in the country, Gulf Craft is now developing a new production facility dedicated to the manufacturing of vessels for use in the Indian Ocean which will see its operations and production capacity double within 16 months.Gulf Craft established its operations in the Maldives with a 100,000 square foot manufacturing facility that has produced top-quality pleasure boats and rapid transport vessels. Gulf Craft is now focusing on further expansion of its operations in the Maldives to support the government’s strategy to strengthen the tourism sector. This will be driven by doubling its production capacity in the country and by giving back to the community through the new training facility for captains and crew.In early 2021 the shipyard was awarded a government contract, thru MTCC, to manufacture a fleet of specially designed high-quality speed boats for use across the Integrated National Public Ferry Network. The new speed boats will offer a convenient and efficient transportation system to all administrative islands of the Maldives, with capabilities to transport up to 53 passengers at a time and will connect the capital city to nearby islands. The public transportation project is one of the largest government initiatives and will contribute to connecting the various islands of the Maldives upon completion.Gulf Craft team in the Maldives“The Maldives is our first international destination, where we have built in-country competencies by leveraging the opportunities that the country provides for the marine and tourism sector. With the doubling of our production capacity and the new training facility we hope to serve the local community even better through the creation of new job opportunities and in further boosting tourism,” said Mohammed Hussein Alshaali, Gulf Craft’s Chairman. Last year Gulf Craft announced that it will invest in a strategic development in the Maldives named ‘Gulf Lagoon’. The project will feature a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, a marina for seafarers and live-aboards, a maritime school offering captain/crew training for young Maldivians, and a resort, among others.Since the company’s inception in 1982, Gulf Craft has grown to become one of the top seven shipyards in the world: once a builder of small fishing boats in its modest premises, which was a genuine passion for Gulf Craft, they then established their credentials as a leader of innovation and technology in the yachting industry. With five brands in their product portfolio ranging from 31 to 175 feet, Gulf Craft manufactures yachts and boats that appeal to a wide audience, such as touring passenger vessels, Silvercraft family day boats, Oryx Sport Cruisers, Nomad Explorer Yachts, and the flagship Majesty Yachts.Credits: Gulf Craft
January 20, 2022